Connector block

ABSTRACT

A two row connector block for mounting on a circuit board with two rows of female terminals extending parallel to the circuit board and with a contact tail of each terminal in electrical connection with the circuit board. The terminal cavities in different rows are located one above the other. An insulating spacer is provided to prevent accidental short circuit connections from occurring when contact pins are inserted into the terminals in the row immediately adjacent the circuit board.

United States Patent Black et a1.

[54] CONNECTOR BLOCK [72] Inventors: Richard W. Black, Manchester;Robert F. Evans, Harrisburg, both of Pa.

Berg Electronics, Inc., New Cumberland, Pa.

Filed: April 5, 1971 Appl. No.: 131,349

Assignee:

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,601,781 8/1971 Mullin..339/192 R [451 Oct. 10, 1972 2,938,187 5/1960 Brodrick et a1. ..339/31M 3,384,864 5/1968 Schwartz ..339/17 LC 3,487,355 12/1969 Cairns..339/191 M Primary ExaminerMarvin A. Champion AssistantExaminer-Lawrence J. Staab Att0rney-Th0mas Hooker [5 7] ABSTRACT A tworow connector block for mounting on a circuit board with two rows offemale terminals extending parallel to the circuit board and with acontact tail of each terminal in electrical connection with the circuitboard. The terminal cavities in different rows are located one above theother. An insulating spacer is provided to prevent accidental shortcircuit connections from occurring when contact pins are inserted intothe terminals in the row immediately adjacent the circuit board.

7 Claims, 12 Drawing Figures a. -zo

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INV Richard OJ. Black BY Robert F vans THOMAS fiookcr, weir MtorncwCONNECTOR BLOCK The invention relates to a connector block having femaledisconnect terminals confined in two rows of cavities formed in theblock for establishing electrical connections with contact pins whichare inserted into the cavities. One row of cavities is above the otherrow of cavities. The block is mounted on a circuit board or like supportwith the rows of cavities parallel to the top circuit board surface.Contact or tail portions of the terminals in the row of cavitiesadjacent the circuit board extend from the block and into the board atthe end of the cavities through which the pins are inserted. The contactportions or tails of the terminals in the second row of cavities locatedfurther away from the circuit board than the first row of cavities,extend from the ends of the cavities away from the ends through whichthe pins are inserted past the first row of cavities and into thecircuit board. An insulating strip is provided between the contactportions of the terminals in the second row of cavities and theterminals in the first row of cavities to prevent short circuitelectrical connections from being formed between the terminals in thedifferent rows by pins inserted into the first cavities.

In one embodiment of the invention preformed disconnect terminals areconfined within the cavities. A locking pin is used to hold thepreformed terminals in the row of cavities in the connector block. Inanother embodiment disconnect contact portions are confined within thecavities together with separate springs which are used to bias malecontacts inserted within the cavities against the disconnect contactportions. The use of integral preformed terminals has certain advantageswhere the mating male pins are relatively small in cross section and theuse of the two part spring and contact is advantageous where the malecontacts are relatively large in cross section. In either embodiment ofthe invention, the bottom surface of the connector block may be providedwith rounded ridges to space the same from the circuit board and permitcleaning of flux from the circuit board subsequent to soldering.

Other objects and features of the invention will become apparent as thedescription proceeds, especially when taken in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings illustrating the invention, of which there arefive sheets.

IN THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a connector block and apin board which is inserted into the block;

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken through the connector block with thepin board inserted into the block;

FIG. 3 is a top view of FIG. 2;

FIGS. 4 and 5 are front and rear views respectively of the connectorblock;

FIGS. 6 and 7 are front and rear views respectively of a modification ofthe connector block;

FIG. 8 is a sectional view taken through the connector block of FIGS. 6and 7;

FIG. 9 is a sectional view taken along line 99 of FIG. 6;

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the insulating block I of theembodiment of FIG. 6 and 7; and

FIGS. 1 1 and 12 are sectional views taken along lines 11-11 and 12-12ofFIG. 7. A connector block 10 includes an elongate molded plasticinsulating housing 12 having a rectangular cross section and top face14, bottom face 16 and front face 18 and back face 20. A first row 22 ofterminal receiving cavities 24 extends along the bottom of body 12adjacent face 16. The cavities 24 run between the front and back faces18 and 20. Each cavity includes a terminal stop 26 adjacent face 18 forlimiting insertion of the terminal in the cavity. The cavity mouth 28adjacent stop 26 is bevelled to provide a leadin for a male contact pinwhich is inserted into the cavity. A female disconnect terminal 30,which may be of the type disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,370,265, isinserted into each cavity 24 from the opening at rear face 20 so thatthe terminal abuts stop 26 and terminal contact tang 32 extends past thestop and outwardly of body 12. The tang 32 is then bent down through anangle of approximately so that it is confined in a groove 34 formed inthe bottom of the cavity 24 adjacent front-face l8. Tang 32 extendsoutwardly past bottom surface 16. With the tang 32 bent down asdescribed, the terminal 30 is confined within cavity 24.

The body 12 is provided with a second row 36 of ter-- minal cavities 38located above row 22 and adjacent to top surface 14. Each cavity 38 islocated immediately above a cavity 24 and is provided with a terminalstop 40 similar to stop 26. Stop 40 is bevelled adjacent the leadreceiving end of cavity 38 to provide a contact pin leadin 42. Adisconnect terminal 44, which again may be of the type disclosed in U.S.Pat. No. 3,370,265, is inserted into each cavity 38 through opening 46thereof in wall 20 until the lead end of the terminal abuts stop 40.Terminals 44 are provided with contact tails 48 which project from theend of the terminal adjacent opening 46. After the terminals have beeninserted, the tails 48 are bent down through an angle of 90 so that theyare positioned in grooves 50 formed in back face 20. Each groove 50extends from a terminal recess 38 to the top of recess 24 locatedbeneath the recess 38. An extension 52 of groove 50 extends from thebottom of each recess 24 to bottom wall 16.

Pin bore 54 extends the length of body 12 and intersects the top of eachterminal cavity 38 adjacent end 46 thereof. Windows 56 communicate thebore with the body top 14 between adjacent terminal cavities 38 andextend longitudinally into the cavities to a slight extent. Thus, theentire longitudinal extent of the bore 54 communicates with either thetop 14 of body 12 through windows 56 or with the interior of cavities38. Body 14 is preferably formed of a plastic by a molding operation.Bore 54 is formed by mold parts which extend through windows and intothe bore during molding.

After the terminals 44 have been inserted into the cavities 38, plasticlocking pin 58 is inserted through bore 54 behind the edge of theterminals adjacent cavity end 46 so as to lock the terminals within thecavities 38. Locking pin 58 may be provided with a head 60 which restsflush on one end of the block when the pin is fully inserted. The pin 58is visible from the top of the block through windows 56 when inserted.

An elongate flat insulating bar 62 is positioned in a groove 64 formedin back face 20 along the openings of recesses 24. The insulating strip62 is held in place in groove 64 by the tangs 48 of terminals 44 whichare located outwardly of the strip. Strip 62 is provided to insulatetangs 48 from pins which may be overinserted into cavities 24 toestablish electrical connections with terminals 30. The strip preventthe leads from contacting tangs 48 and thus prevents short circuitconnections with terminals 44.

Block may be mounted on circuit board 66 with tangs 32 and 48 extendingthrough holes in the board so that they may be solder connected tocontact pads 68 and 70 on the bottom of the board. The bottom surface 16of the block is spaced from the board by crosswise extending curvedridges 72 to facilitate removal of flux from between the board and theblock after solder- Block 10 is used for forming disconnect electricalconnections between circuitry on board 66 and two rows of contact pins74 carried on board 76. The electrical connections are formed byinserting lead ends of pins 74 within the open ends 78 and 80 ofcavities 24 and 38 and then pushing the board 76 toward the block 10 sothat the pins 74 are guided along leadins 28 and 42 into electricalconnection with terminals 30 and 44.

Connector block v10 is particularly adapted for mounting on a circuitboard to receive miniature contactpins 74. In contrast thereto, similarconnector block 90 illustrated in FIGS. 6 thru 10, is adapted to matewith larger wire wrap contact pins 92 each being conventionally squarewith a cross section of 0.025 inches on a side.

The block 90 includes a molded plastic body 94 similar to body 12 havinga top face 96, a bottom face 98 and front and rear faces 100 and 102.Two rows 104 and 106 of terminal cavities 108 and 110 extendlongitudinally along body 94 with each cavity 108 and 1 10 communicatingthe front and rear body faces 100 and 102. The openings of the cavities108 and 110 in front face 100 are provided with bevelled leadins 112 and1 14. As in body 12, a groove 116 extends from the end of the lowercavities 108 adjacent front face 100 to bottom face 98 and a groove 1 18extends from the opening of each upper cavity 110 with rear face 102along the face to the junction with the cavity 108 located beneath thecavity 110. A continuation 120 of groove 118 extends from each cavity108 to the bottom face 98.

Grooves 122 are formed in the side walls 124, 126 of each cavity 108 and110 adjacent the top and bottom cavity walls 128 and 130. Lockingrecesses 132 are located at each end of each groove 122 and are joinedto the grooves by locking shoulders 134.

An electrical contact 136 comprises a flat contact body 138 with anupwardly bowed contact ridge 140 formed in the median portion thereofand a pair of flexible latch fingers 142 formed on the free end thereof.Each finger 142 includes a latch surface 144 which faces away from thefree end of the terminal. A square wire wrap tail 146 extends away fromthe other end of the contact body at an angle of 90 therefrom. Thecontacts 136 are mounted in the bottom of cavities 108 by insertingbodies 136 into the cavities through the openings at faces 100 with theedges of the bodies confined within the bottom grooves 122. Duringinsertion the latch fingers 142 are bent inwardly toward each otheruntil the contact is fully inserted at which time the latch surface 144snaps back past the shoulders 134 and into recesses 132 to confine thecontacts within the cavities 108. When fully inserted the portion of thecontact joining the body and tail 146 is seated within groove 116 andthe tail projects perpendicularly away from bottom surface 98.

Spring member 148 is provided with flat body portion 150 having a pairof latch fingers 152 at each end. Each finger has a latch surface 154 atthe free end thereof. The fingers and latch surfaces 152 and 154 may beidentical to the fingers and surfaces 142 and 144 of contact 136. Acurved cantilever spring 156 is formed from the central portion of body150 and projects to one side of the body. The spring member 148 isinserted into cavity 108 through either end thereof by positioning itwithin grooves 122 at the top of the cavity and then inserting it sothat the fingers 152 at the lead end are flexed inwardly and when fullyinserted snap back into recess 132 behind latch surface 134. When fullyinserted the latch surface 154 at each end of the spring are lockedbehind latch surfaces 134 at each end of the cavity to confine thespring therein. The spring is inserted into the cavity so that the freeend of the cantilever spring 156 extends away from front surface 100. Agroove 158 extends along the lower face 102 of block 94 at the mouths ofcavities 108, and elongate insulating strip 160 is confined withingroove 158.

a The upper cavities are each provided with a spring 162 in the top ofthe cavity identical to the spring 148 in cavities 108. A contact 164includes a wire wrap tail 166 and a flat body portion 168 having acontact ridge 170 formed in the median portion thereof and a pair ofresilient latching fingers 172 formed at the free end of the body. Thecontacts 164 are inserted into cavities 110 through the cavity openingat the rear face 102 by positioning the contact fingers 172 in thegrooves 122'at the bottom of the cavity and then moving the contacts 164into the cavity so that when fully inserted the latch surface 174 onfingers 172 have snapped back behind the latch surfaces 134 at the endsof grooves 122 adjacent the front face 100 to confine the contactswithin the cavities. When fully inserted the portion of the contacts 164joining body 168 and the wire wrap tails 166 are seated in grooves 118and the tails 166 are seated in the grooves so that the insulating stripis confined within the groove 158 and the contacts 164 are insulatedfrom the interior of cavities 108.

As indicated in the drawings, the cantilever springs 156 in each cavity108, 110 are located immediately opposite the contact ridges 140, sothat when the rows of wire wrap pins 92 are inserted into the cavities,the springs are deflected to hold the contact pins 92 in electricalengagement with the contact ridges. As indicated the block 90 may bemounted on a circuit board 178 and solder connections may be formedbetween the wire wrap pins 146 and 168 and printed circuitry 170, 172 onthe board. Wire wrap connections or disconnect terminals may be used toform electrical connections with the free ends of tails 146 and 166 asdesired.

In connector block 90 it is desirable to form the contacts and springsfrom separate pieces of metal. In this way the manufacturing processesrequired for each member can be more accurately controlled and bothmembers need not be subjected to a manufacturing process required for asingle member. For instance, it is desirable to heat treat the springsthereby assuring that the cantilever springs provide a high pressurecontact between the inserted pin and the contact ridge. Heat treating ofcontacts would increase the brittleness thereof and render it difficultto perform any subsequent forming operations on the contacts. Byutilizing independent springs and contacts, it is possible to alter thegeometry and performance characteristics of a spring or contact withoutchanging the other and thus reducing the cost of modifying the block toaccommodate different types of male contacts and to meet differentrequirements.

Connector block 90 may be provided with spacing ridges in the bottomfaces 98 thereof in order to space the block from a circuit board tofacilitate flux removal. In either of the blocks or 90 the contactportions which extend below the connector block for establishingelectrical connection with circuit elements may be solder tangs asdisclosed in block 10, wire wrap tails as disclosed in block 90 or otherforms of contacts depending upon the requirement for the block.

While we have illustrated and described preferred embodiments of ourinvention, it is understood that these are capable of modification, andwe therefore do not wish to be limited to the precise details set forth,but desire to avail ourselves of such changes and alterations as fallwithin the purview of the following claims.

What we claim as our invention is:

l. A connector block comprising an elongate insulating body having a topsurface, a bottom surface and front and back surfaces, a first row ofterminal cavities communicating said front and back surfaces adjacentsaid bottom surface, a second row of terminal cavities communicatingsaid front and back surfaces adjacent said top surface with each cavityof said second row being located immediately above a cavity of saidfirst row, first disconnect terminal means confined in each of saidcavities in said first row including a contact tail extending from theend of a cavity adjacent said front surface toward and past said bottomsurface, second disconnect tenninal means confined in each cavity ofsaid second row of cavities including a contact tail extending from theend of a cavity adjacent said back surface past said first row ofcavities and beyond said bottom surface whereby each terminal means maybe secured to a circuit element adjacent said bottom surface, andinsulating means separating said terminal means in said first row ofcavities from said tails of said terminal means in said second row ofcavities.

2. A connector block as in claim 1 including a groove extending alongsaid back face intersecting each cavity of said first row of cavities,said insulating means comprising an insulating strip confined betweenthe bottom of said groove and the contact tails of said second terminalmeans.

3. A connector block as in claim 1 including a bore extendinglongitudinally along said block and intersecting said second row ofcavities and a locking pin insertable within said second row of cavitiesto confine said second terminal means within such cavities.

4. A connector block as in claim 3 wherein the entire longitudinallength of said bore is exposed to either the cavities of said second rowof cavities or a surface of the body.

5. A connector block as in claim 1 including rounded ribs formed on thebottom surface for spacing said connector block from a circuit board.

6. A connector block comprising an insulating housing, a first row ofcavities in said housing communicatingfront and back surfaces thereof, asecond row of cavities in said housing communicating said surfaces andlocated above said first row of cavities, first circuit elementsconfined within the cavities of said first row of cavities and secondcircuit elements confined within the cavities of said second row ofcavities, first contact means adjacent said front surface extending fromsaid first circuit elements outwardly of the housing for establishingelectrical connections with circuit members, second contact meansextending along said back surface past said first circuit elements andoutwardly of the housing for establishing electrical connections withcircuit members, and an elongate insulating strip extending along saidback surface and separating said first circuit elements from said secondcontact means.

7. A connector block comprising an insulating housing, a first row ofcavities within said housing communicating with opposite exteriorsurfaces thereof, a second row of cavities in said housing communicatingsaid surfaces and spaced from said first row of cavities, first circuitelements confined within the cavities of said first row of cavities andsecond circuit elements confined within the cavities of said second rowof cavities, first contact means extending from said first circuitelements outwardly of the housing for establishing electricalconnections with circuit members, second contact means extending fromsaid second circuit elements along one of said surfaces past said firstrow of circuit elements and outwardly of the housing for establishingelectrical connections with circuit members, and en elongate insulatingstrip extending along said one surface and separating said first circuitelements from said second circuit means.

1. A connector block comprising an elongate insulating body having a topsurface, a bottom surface and front and back surfaces, a first row ofterminal cavities communicating said front and back surfaces adjacentsaid bottom surface, a second row of terminal cavities communicatingsaid front and back surfaces adjacent said top surface with each cavityof said second row being located immediately above a cavity of saidfirst row, first disconnect terminal means confined in each of saidcavities in said first row including a contact tail extending from theend of a cavity adjacent said front surface toward and past said bottomsurface, second disconnect terminal means confined in each cavity ofsaid second row of cavities including a contact tail extending from theend of a cavity adjacent said back surface past said first row ofcavities and beyond said bottom surface whereby each terminal means maybe secured to a circuit element adjacent said bottom surface, andinsulating means separating said terminal means in said first row ofcavities from said tails of said terminal means in said second row ofcavities.
 2. A connector block as in claim 1 including a grooveextending along said back face intersecting each cavity of said firstrow of cavities, said insulating means comprising an insulating stripconfined between the bottom of said groove and the contact tails of saidsecond terminal means.
 3. A connector block as in claim 1 including abore extending longitudinally along said block and intersecting saidsecond row of cavities and a locking pin insertable within said secondrow of cavities to confine said second terminal means within suchcavities.
 4. A connector block as in claim 3 wherein the entirelongitudinal length of said bore is exposed to either the cavities ofsaid second row of cavities or a surface of the body.
 5. A connectorblock as in claim 1 including rounded ribs formed on the bottom surfacefor spacing said connector block from a circuit board.
 6. A connectorblock comprising an insulating housing, a first row of cavities in saidhousing communicating front and back surfaces thereof, a second row ofcavities in said housing communicating said surfaces and located abovesaid first row of cavities, first circuit elements confined within thecavities of said first row of cavities and second circuit elementsconfined within the cavities of said second row of cavities, firstcontact means adjacent said front surface extending from said firstcircuit elements outwardly of the housing for establishing electricalconnections with circuit members, second contact means extending alongsaid back surface past said first circuit elements and outwardly of thehousing for establishing electrical connections with circuit members,and an elongate insulating strip extending along said back surface andseparating said first circuit elements from said second contact means.7. A connector block comprising an insulating housing, a first row ofcavities within said housing communicating with opposite exteriorsurfaces thereof, a second row of cavities in said housing communicatingsaid surfaces and spaced from said first row of cavities, first circuitelements confined within the cavities of said first row of cavities andsecond circuit elements confined within the cavities of said second rowof cavities, first contact means extending from said first circuitelements outwardly of the housing for establishing electricalconnections with circuit members, second contact means extending fromsaid second circuit elements along one of said surfaces past said firstrow of circuit elements and outwardly of the housing for establishingelectrical connections with circuit members, and en elongate insulatingstrip extending along said one surface and separating said first circuitelements from said second circuit means.